Graphics cards are an essential part of computers and laptops, enabling image display on the monitor. There are graphics cards that can be integrated directly onto the motherboard, as well as external graphics cards available in gamingand professionalversions with AMD(ATI) or NVIDIAchips. A graphics card’s performance depends on the frequency, number, and type of cores (GPU) and type and size of video memory or the memory bus width. Some graphics cards provide support for 3D display, allowing the user to view 3D pictures and movies and play 3D games on the monitor.

Graphics cards are specially designed to connect to the backside of a computer. The connectors on the cards are analogue VGA, digital DVI, HDMI, and DisplayPort. The board is connected through a standard PCI-Express x16 slot. Some graphics cards have passive cooling; however, a powerful graphics card is normally equipped with an active cooler for continuous operation. Among the best-known manufacturers of graphics cards are ASUS, EVGA, Gainward, Gigabyte, MSI, Sapphire, and Zotac.